General Support for Science Does Not Always Correlate With Attitudes Toward Specific Science Issues, Says New Report; Offers Conceptual Framework for Science Literacy Research

WASHINGTON – U.S. adults perform comparably to adults in other economically developed countries on most measures of science knowledge and support science in general, says a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. However, attitudes toward some specific issues, such as climate change or genetic engineering, may be shaped by factors such as values and beliefs rather than knowledge of the science alone. Despite popular assumptions, research shows that increasing science literacy will not lead to appreciably greater support for science.

The committee that conducted the study and wrote the report said that science knowledge is only one component of science literacy, which also encompasses understanding scientific practices, such as forming and testing hypotheses, and understanding science as a social process, such as the role of peer review.

“Historically, assessments of science literacy have focused on individuals, but we see now that communities can engage in science and produce scientific knowledge in a way that transcends any individual’s ability,” said committee chair Catherine Snow, Patricia Albjerg Graham Professor of Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. “Furthermore, the structural features of a society can impede or enhance individuals’ or communities’ development of science literacy.”

Communities can demonstrate science literacy by leveraging individuals’ diverse knowledge and skills to achieve specific goals, the report says. For example, AIDS activists in the late 1980s to early 1990s developed scientific knowledge to demand modifications to drug-testing procedures and drug-approval policies and worked together to successfully advocate for expediting the delivery of drugs to consumers in health emergencies. In addition, communities can meaningfully contribute to science knowledge through engagement in community action, often in collaboration with scientists. For instance, activists in a community may work together to detect and address links between environmental hazards and cancers.

Individuals with limited economic resources and limited access to high-quality education have fewer opportunities to develop science literacy and health literacy, the report says. This lack of access disproportionately affects some demographic groups including Latinos and others who speak English as a second language, African-Americans, and children growing up in low-income families.

Limited evidence shows that populations around the world have positive attitudes toward science and support public funding for scientific research, and these attitudes have been generally stable over time, the committee found. In addition, there is an overall high level of trust in scientists and in scientific institutions.

The report presents a research agenda with questions about creating new measures of science literacy and expanding the information available to clarify: 1) the relationship between science knowledge and attitudes toward science; 2) how science literacy is used and measured in different contexts; 3) the relationship of science literacy to other literacy skills; and 4) the role of science literacy for citizens as decision-makers.

The study was sponsored by the National Institutes of Health. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are private, nonprofit institutions that provide independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation to solve complex problems and inform public policy decisions related to science, technology, and medicine. The Academies operate under an 1863 congressional charter to the National Academy of Sciences, signed by President Lincoln. For more information, visithttp://national-academies.org. A committee roster follows.

Copies of Science Literacy: Concepts, Contexts, and Consequences are available from the National Academies Press on the Internet at www.nap.edu or by calling 202-334-3313 or 1-800-624-6242. Reporters may obtain a copy from the Office of News and Public Information (contacts listed above).

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THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES OF SCIENCES, ENGINEERING, AND MEDICINE

Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education

Board on Science Education

Committee on Science Literacy and Public Perception of Science

Catherine E. Snow(chair)

Patricia Albjerg Graham ProfessorGraduate School of EducationHarvard University

Cambridge, Mass.

Nick Allum

Professor

University of Essex

Colchester, United Kingdom

John C. Besley

Associate Professor and Ellis N. Brandt Chair in Public RelationsMichigan State University

East Lansing

Dominique Brossard

Professor and ChairDepartment of Life Science CommunicationUniversity of Wisconsin

Madison

Noah Weeth Feinstein

Associate ProfessorDepartment of Curriculum and Instructions

School of Education

University of Wisconsin

Madison

S. James Gates Jr. [1]

Distinguished University Professor and Center for String and Particle Theory DirectorDepartment of PhysicsUniversity of Maryland

College Park

Louis M. Gomez

Chair

Educational Department

Graduate School of Education and Information Studies

University of California

Los Angeles

Alexa T. McCray2

Professor of MedicineHarvard Medical School

Boston

Janet Ohene-Frempong

President

J.O. Frempong & Associates Inc.

Elkins Park, Pa.

Jonathan Osborne

Kamalachari Professor of Science EducationGraduate School of EducationStanford University